Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Ink Trivia

Ink Trivia

The
ink cartridge for fountain pens was introduced around 1950. It was a
disposable, pre-filled plastic or glass cartridge designed for clean & easy
insertion. They were an immediate success. The introduction of ballpoints,
however, overshadowed the invention of the cartridge. Fountain pens today sell
as a classic writing instrument and the original pens have become a very hot
collectible.

International Standard cartridges are a common pattern in use by
most European and Japanese fountain pen manufacturers. Fountain pens designs
will adopt one of two approaches for cartridges: proprietary designs that force
you to buy that brand of cartridge, ensuring they receive the ongoing income
from refills; or the standard design, which gives you a choice of cartridge
brands to use in your pen.

There are two versions of the international standard cartridge -
'short' 38mm cartridges and 'long' 73mm cartridges. Most pens will accept
either, and many are designed to accommodate two short cartridges - one in use
and one spare in the barrel. This should ensure that you don't run out of ink
unexpectedly. A few very compact fountain pens can only use the short version.

Pen Boutique offers a variety of ink cartridges for
fountain pens. Private Reserve
offers the most variety color selections in a universal short option that fits
most pens. How many different ink colors does Private Reserve offer?